Not all the miniatures in the range represent Samurai. There
is also room for monks with Naginata (GEM-005) or bow (GEM-011). At first
I thought these models were a bit bulky compared to the more slender follower
figures, almost like the Samurai figures. But then I noticed they (or
some of them at least) are actually wearing armour underneath their robes.

The last set
of figures are the Followers (GEM-006 & GEM-012), all with naginata,
all wearing do-maru*. This is a more slender group of figures, as befits
the more formfitting type of armour reserved to the lower class footsoldiers.
In some ways I think these are some of the best figures of the range,
because of their dynamic posing and the nice selection of facial expressions
and hairstyles.

* Do-Maru or Body Wrap armour. It first appeared in the
11th century as a lower class armour for foot soldiers and became commonly
used during the Gempei wars. It is a more formfitting type of armour than
the heavy O-Yoroi, with no sleeves. It is made from small scales of leather
or metal laced into plates with cord and lacquered. The weight rests mostly
on the shoulders and it opens under the right arm as opposed to the even
cheaper Haramaki which closes in the back.

The
final two figures are TAG's Special Offer limited editions figures. The
Gempei ranges is divided in collections of six packs each. All packs are
available separately, but if you get the whole collection, you receive
a free limited edition figure. The first offer figure is a Samurai in
Yoroi with Katana and a severed head, excellent character figure. The
second offer figure is another monk with Naginata.

This
concludes the review for now. Overall, I was pretty impressed with this
range. The care and attention to detail is excellent and the variety of
poses makes each figure an individual. This will make it necessary to
plan how they rank up before basing if you want to use them for massive
battles, but the result will be most impressive. More of this I say!

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